Mary Anne's Terrible Month
by Elizabeth8289
Summary: Things hasn't gotten well with Mary Anne because she learned that her and Cam's manager, Jennifer is dating the director, Mr. Jackon. How can she handle that? Would they make things worse if they decided to get married?
1. Day One

Baby-Sitters Club belongs to Ann M. Martin

I was doing my homework on a Friday afternoon. Normally, I'm with my all-time favorite movie star, Cam Geary; whom I've been recording with for a year; but he came down with the flu and was canceled for today since I don't like recording stuff or anything else on my own.

That's because I'm a shy 15-year-old ninth grader at Stoneybrook High School, Mary Anne Spier. Plus, without him, I might be very nervous. And that's the truth. All I had was Math and Science. Math was based on ratios. I read examples to help me out since I don't know them too well and you know what, it turned out to be a simple thing to do. Science was just report for any health issues. I'm doing mine on pneumonia since I had it myself and I ended up having breathing problems.

The last time I did a report on medical conditions, I was still at Stoneybrook Middle School in Health class during short takes. I did it on cancer since that's how my mother, grandfather, and most importantly, my best friend, Kayla Willis, died.

First off is Mom since she died when I was too little to remember her and Dad, who raised me on his own, was too upset to keep me for a while, so I was sent to Iowa to be with my grandparents until I was 18 months old. And Grandpa Bill Baker-Mom's maiden name-had just passed on of colon cancer a week before I got reunited with Grandma Verna and I don't even remember him at all.

And, Kayla's been dead for almost a year. I miss her terribly. And, she & her identical twin sister, Kaylee; who is my other best friend; happened to live just three houses down from me. They're African-American and they grew up in New York with their parents and six other siblings. They were the two eldest of eight kids. Kaylee's the oldest now. In fact, she's a minute younger than Kayla. Her death was just hard on me and Kaylee since we were very, very close.

Oh, besides breathing problems, I also have diabetes. We're only allowed to choose one medical condition, which I don't mind. I didn't care which one I pick based on my life. Diabetes isn't too hard to handle at all. I know how that is because my friend, Stacey McGill, has the same thing. Only, she's brittle and I'm not. But I follow her footsteps in case I get stuck.

I finished my two-page report when I noticed the time: five-twenty. Yikes! I put my homework away in my backpack, grabbed my bike, and started pedaling all the way to Claudia's-where we do meetings. My stepsister, Dawn, is usually with me, but she's in California for the weekend. I was half-way to Claudia's when my bike tire apparently ran over a nail and it ended up with a flat tire. I groaned. So, I got off and walked the rest of the way. After I parked in her parkway, I raced inside and made it! It was only five-twenty-eight. Whew! That was close. I collapsed on Claudia's bed.

"Tired?" asked Claudia who was giggling.

"Thank god I made it. I had just finished my Science report when I noticed it was five-twenty. And, when I was riding my bike here, it ran over a nail and it ended up with a flat tire," I said. "I was supposed to be with Cam, but he had to cancel because he has the flu."

"That doesn't sound too good," said Kristy.

"I know," I agreed. "It's just me and Dad for supper tonight since Sharon's working late, Carlos has a basketball practice, and Meredith is going to watch him."

Sharon is my stepmom and she's the mother of Dawn. Carlos and Meredith are my adopted siblings.

"I thought you're hanging-out with me tonight," said Kristy.

Opps.

"I'm glad you're telling me that. Honestly, I forgot all about tonight since I remembered it's a father-daughter night," I said. "Why don't you come with us? You've done it before."

"Not a bad idea," said Claudia. "I'm sure Mr. Spier wouldn't mind that at all."

"But she promised it would be just the two of us," Kristy pointed out.

"I didn't want to tell Dad at the last minute to let him down. I don't work like that," I said. "We can always do it tomorrow. It's not a big deal."

"Are you going to remember that?" asked Kristy.

"I will. You can call me to remind me. I don't have a sitting job until tomorrow night, so I'll be free in the afternoon," I replied.

"Perfect. Calling you is a good idea," said Kristy.

After the meeting, at home, I put my bike in the backyard so I can tell Dad about that flat tire. Dad wasn't home yet. When I got in, something was telling me that I got plans tomorrow. Uh-oh. Cam and I supposed to have a concert in the afternoon. How could I be at two places at once? Unless… I could invite Kristy, but she might be angry since it's supposed the two of us. Except for one tiny thing: would the concert still go on if Cam is still sick with that flu? And, there would be no way I'd do it by myself. I might get stage freight. He is supposed to call me tomorrow. That's also on Sunday afternoon as well anyway. They're both taking place in New Jersey. And, if it's changed to next weekend, I'd have no problems to be with Kristy.

Maybe I shouldn't worry until then. I cannot wait for Dad to swing by to get me. We always eat out when there's just the two of us. We both love that. I already had my purse with my breathing tube in case I need it when I was waiting at the door when his car showed up. I made sure the door was locked and went to the car.

He knew I wasn't with Cam because I told him earlier. Who would want to eat alone anyway?

"Hi, honey," said Dad.

"Hi," I said as I told him about the flat tire.

"I can take it to the store Monday since the shop is closed for a weekend vacation," said Dad as we took off.

"Okay. Sounds good," I agreed.

We were planning to eat dinner at_ Friendly's_. We go there every now and then.

"Is the concert still on?" asked Dad.

"I have no idea. I won't know it until tomorrow. If not, Kristy and I are planning to hang-out. And, I'm not going to blew her off, so I might try to invite her if the concert goes on," I replied.

"That's a good idea," said Dad.

"I agree," I said. "And, if it's postponed until next weekend, it would still work out fine. But I forgot all about the concert."

Sometimes, Dad is no help because the next thing I knew he was laughing as usual! He thinks _everything_ is funny.

"I'll put those worries aside until tomorrow. Both Kristy and Cam are going to call me tomorrow," I said.

Later, Cam texted me saying the concert is canceled until next weekend because he's in the hospital with stomach pains and it was his appendix. Okay, good. So, I can still hang-out with Kristy and baby-sit for Jenny. That's what I told Dad. I was reading when the phone rang and I came down to answer it.

"Hello. Hey, Kristy, what's up?" I asked.

"I just found out you have a concert tomorrow. It's on TV," said Kristy.

Sure enough, when I turned it on, she was correct.

"You don't need to worry about that now. We're supposed to, but it's canceled until next weekend because Cam's in the hospital because he had some stomach pains and found out it was his appendix. I was going to wait and see just in case. Another thing, you know I'd invite you to watch me if it was still on," I told her.

"That's true you would. Did you forget again?" asked Kristy.

"I did. Don't ask why. I am _never _like that," I said. "I remembered that when I got home."

Kristy just laughed at that.

"Very funny. Dad laughed, too," I said.

"Men are troublemakers," said Kristy.

We both cracked up at the joke.


	2. The Terrible Day

In the middle of the night, I was having a hard time breathing and I couldn't find my breathing tube-not even in my purse. Meredith noticed that.

"Are you okay?" asked Meredith.

"I can't breathe and I don't know where my breathing tube is," I replied. "It was in my purse."

"I do," said Meredith as she got up in a jiffy to get it and came back in to put it on me. "It was in the living room."

Leave it to her. She was my lifesaver. Then, she noticed it was cracked.

"I'll go get Dad," said Meredith as she left to Dad and Sharon's room. "Dad."

That was when he woke up noticing her.

"What is it, Meredith?" asked Dad.

"Mary Anne can't breathe and her breathing tube cracked," replied Meredith.

"I'll be right there," said Dad.

She came back to me and said, "Dad's coming. Just hang on."

That was when he came in and noticed Meredith was right.

"It's okay, honey, I'm here now," said Dad.

Meredith noticed I stopped breathing.

"Um, Dad, she's not breathing," said Meredith.

"I better take her to the hospital now," said Dad grabbing me. "It's going to be alright. Just keep breathing."

But I could not breathe at all. At the hospital, I was on oxygen and breathing machine to breathe better while the doctor gave Dad the new tube. I felt better after two hours. I must have fallen asleep on the way because when we got back home, I was already put to bed covered. Dad put the new tube on the nightstand. The next day, Kristy called me saying we can hang-out for noon.

"Sounds good," I said.

Kristy visits her father and his new wife, Zoey on weekends. She's usually with her mom and stepfather, Watson Brewer, at the mansion during the week, but they're in Florida for one long month and they gave Kristy a break from baby-sitting her younger siblings. See, her parents are divorced and Mr. Thomas-who left-came back for a job and Kristy had a hard to make a decision until she decided to visit her father each weekend because she missed him too much. She has three brothers, two stepsiblings who are Watson's kids, Zoey's daughter, Crystal, and an adopted sister. Can you imagine having seven siblings? Kristy doesn't care.

I left my house at eleven-thirty and walked down to meet Kristy at her house. When I got there, she was on the porch waiting for me.

"Zoey is bringing us to the mall and when we're ready, we can call her and she'll bring you to Jenny's if the time gets closer," said Kristy.

"Good plan," I agreed.

Zoey came out and drove us to the mall. We thanked her and we went inside. We had fun when Marci showed up.

"Hi," said Marci.

"Hi, what's up?" I asked.

"Nothing much. I'm here with Patti and Kathi. Aren't you supposed to be with me?" asked Marci.

"I'm here with Kristy," I said.

"But we're supposed to do it today," said Marci.

I must have gotten confused because I said, "I don't even remember planning to do that. And besides, if I did, I wasn't going to keep blowing Kristy off."

"And, you'd tell me," added Kristy.

"I know I would, but I just don't remember making any plans with Marci," I said. "Let's forget about the whole thing because I am not starting any arguments here."

I left. When Kristy caught up to me, she nearly made a scene like Dawn does, but I stopped her in time. I ain't getting embarrassed if everyone stares at us. I hate arguing period. And, there is no way I'd lose my best friend. At least Kristy would forget easily. That's what I like about her. An hour later, I don't know if Kristy left because she overheard Marci telling Patti and Kathi that I 'lied' because I did made plans with Marci. I overheard that as well.

I got so mad at Marci that I went to her and said, "I hope you're happy. Kristy probably heard you and she left. I did not lie."

"Well, you did. Since when you lie to your own best friend? That can destroy any friendships," said Marci.

"Sorry to break it up to you, but she's correct," said Kathi.

"How could you do that?" asked Patti.

"Let me say it one more time: I don't remember making plans with you. End of story," I said.

"Yeah, you did yesterday at school," said Patti.

"Whatever you say," I muttered as I left.

Did Kristy really leave? I couldn't find her anywhere at all. I tried not to cry. The worst part of all is that Logan, who saw me, yelled at me! I left after he decided to give me a slient treatment. Why no one believes me? When I got home, I ran up to my room and started crying.

Dad didn't know about what happened because he came in and said, "Is everything okay?"

I told him about it.

"Why would I lie to my own best friend? Worst of all, Logan saw me and yelled. He won't even talk to me," I said. "I wouldn't blew off Kristy like that. If I did made plans with Marci, Patti, and Kathi, I'd still let Kristy join us like true friends do."

"I know, honey," said Dad.

"Plus, I do know Marci didn't call me about that. What kind of a friend would that be?" I asked.

"I agree," said Dad.

Wait until I tell Kristy when I see her. But would she believe me? Sure she would.

"I have time, so I should go talk to Kristy before I go baby-sit for Jenny," I said.

"Okay," said Dad.

I felt a bit better after I talked to him. Then, I left there. When I arrived at Kristy's, I rang the doorbell and Zoey let me in to see Kristy.

Luckily, I told Kristy about that and she was shocked that Marci didn't even call me at all. She knew that I didn't tell a lie. I was about to forget about it after we talked to Marci and she felt bad about it. I'm glad that part was over. I was able to forget about it after I baby-sat for Jenny.


	3. The Truth about Mr Jackson and Jennifer

The next day, Kristy and I told the other girls everything and none of them could believe what Marci did.

"At least Marci apologized to you. We'll give her credit for that," said Stacey.

"I know," I agreed.

"How did the concert go?" asked Claudia.

"It was cancelled because Cam was ill. He was in the hospital with stomach pains and it was his appendix, so it's been rescheduled for this weekend instead," I replied.

"Oh, I see," said Claudia.

"Yeah," I said. "There would be no way I'd perform on my own. That would make me too uncomfortable and nervous."

"That's true," agreed Stacey.

After lunch, I heard rumors about Marci saying she changed to her oldself. I don't think that would be true. Patti told me Marci did not change, but she did had a terrible day.

"What happen?" I asked.

"She had a detention for nothing. The others talked and none of them had a detention. She told me that wasn't fair and said they were hypocrite. She had one and she didn't even talk while the others did and the teacher didn't do anything about it," explained Patti.

"Was that the math teacher?" I asked.

"Bingo," replied Kathi who was with us.

"Boy. Maybe I should talk to her," I said.

"Be careful in case she flips-out," warned Patti.

"I don't think she will. Where is she heading to?" I asked.

"The library," replied Kathi.

"Well, I have a class now. I'll probably see later so I won't be late," I said.

"That would be a better idea," agreed Kathi. "She's planning to tell it to the principal."

"Good," I said.

After school and after I went to my locker, I spotted Marci going to her locker and went to her.

"Are you okay now?" I asked. "Patti told me about what happened."

"Yeah. That's not fair to me," said Marci.

"I know it's not," I agreed. "The math teacher is like that to me and I'm the quietest one. That's why I'm glad when he's out between you and me."

"Same here," agreed Marci.

"Did you tell the principal? Patti also mentioned you were planning to do so," I said.

"I already did. He excused me from the detention and is going to tell the teacher to work on the talkers, not the quiet ones and not to give me any detentions for no reason," said Marci. "I felt a lot better after that."

"I'm glad things are better now," I said.

"Me, too," said Marci. "Did the other girls say they give me credit for apologizing to you?"

"Yes, they were happy about that. Don't worry they didn't say anything bad. They gave you a very good comment," I told her.

"Oh, good. I was worried about that part," smiled Marci. "Anyway how long Cam had to rest?"

"Until Saturday, so there is no studios this week. He can do the concert since he'll be better that unless he gets recovered early," I said.

"Can we hang out to so I can make it up to you?" asked Marci shutting the locker door.

"Sure. Kristy wants to join. Is that okay with you?" I asked her.

"I don't mind," said Marci.

"I'm meeting her out front. We're going to my house to do homework first," I said.

"Why don't we go meet her together?" suggested Marci.

"Good plan," I agreed.

That's what we did and Kristy didn't seem to mind Marci to be included. At home, while the other girls were about to do their homework, I called Dad to tell him our plans. In fact, both Kristy and Marci let their parents know as well. After that was all set, I started my homework. All I had was English and History. After that was done, we left the house. Kristy and Marci wanted to bring their backpacks at their houses, so that's what we did. We went to the counter and sat there.

"What could I get you girls?" asked the waitress.

"Hot fudge sundae please," said Marci.

"With rainbow jimmies," I added.

"And, three spoons," Kristy continued.

I can have ice cream and hot fudge along with jimmies.

"Coming right up," said the waitress as she left to get our treat and came back with it. "Here you go, girls."

"Thank you," we all said at once.

"Hey, what an concidence that we're all here at the same time," said Sharon who was on break.

"I know," I agreed. "Dad already knew about our afternoon plans."

"Don't worry, I believe you," said Sharon.

After we paid, we left there for the mall.

"Let's go see a movie," said Marci when we got there.

"Sounds good to me," I said.

We decided to go see _The Miracle Worker_. Then, while the previews were on, I spotted Mr. Jackson and noticed someone who looked similiar to me. That was when I spotted him with Jennifer! Is he dating my manager?

"What the?" I asked myself.

Both Kristy and Marci noticed that, too. I was stunned about that.

"Um, isn't that our _Annie_ director and your manager?" asked Marci in a low voice as I nodded slowly.

After the movie, I said, "I can't believe my manager could be dating our _Annie _director."

"I know, let's hope they'd be just friends otherwise some of the kids cast members except our friends and the adults could be teasing you," said Marci.

"Me, too. I cannot picture that thought at all," I said.

"Perhaps we should find out the truth first," said Kristy.

We saw Mr. Jackson and Jennifer kissing on the lips on our way out.

"I like you a lot. Would you like to be my girlfriend?" asked Mr. Jackson.

"I'd love to," replied Jennifer.

"What!" I exclaimed in a low voice.

"Let's go," whispered Marci as we left.

"Should we keep it as a secret in case the other tease you?" asked Kristy.

"I would," agreed Marci. "Friends are exception."

Me? I also agreed and didn't say one word. I was still stunned that I learned the truth about Jennifer and Mr. Jackson. At home, I still couldn't believe what I saw. I went straight to talk to Dawn.

"You'll never guess what Kristy, Marci, and I just saw at the movies," I said.

"What? You look mad about something," said Dawn.

"I am. Jennifer was with Mr. Jackson. To make things worse, he asked her to be his girlfriend," I told her.

"Wow, that's a surprise," said Dawn.

"The only problem is that Jennifer is my and Cam's manager while Mr. Jackson is our _Annie_ director. If any of the kids including Cokie minus our friends and the teachers find out about that, I could get teased," I continued.

"Uh-oh. That is a big problem," said Dawn.

"So, whatever you do, _please_ don't tell any of them. We're telling the other girls at the meeting," I said.

"Good plan," agreed Dawn.

"I saw Sharon at the diner. It was a concidence that we were there at the same time," I said.

"That is funny," said Dawn as we giggled.

Later, at Claudia's, Kristy, Dawn, and I told the other girls about Mr. Jackson and Jennifer.

"No way!" exclaimed Stacey in her shock voice.

"Yup, I'm worried what might happen, so we better not to tell a soul to anyone else especially Cokie and her sidekicks," I said.

"Good idea to avoid getting teased," said Claudia as the other girls agreed.

At dinner, I came down looking pale. I was worried about what may happen if any of _Annie_ kids finds out the truth about my manager and our _Annie_ director. I know Cokie and her sidekicks might be the only ones who would pick on me.

"Your father is running late. There was traffic," said Sharon.

"I know. He already texted me to tell me," I said.

"You look pale tonight," said my stepmother. "Is everything okay?"

"I'm just concerned about something, that's all," I replied as I told her about everything.

"Oh," said Sharon.

"And, she's afraid she would get picked on," added Dawn.

"I don't know how Mr. Jackson and Jennifer can do this to me," I said. "I'm not very hungry. I got a headache. It's not my diabetes, it's actually normal. May I skip dinner tonight?"

"Okay," said Sharon as I got up to my room.

That was when Dad came home and said, "I thought I would never get out of that traffic. There were a two way car crash."

"At least you're home now," said Sharon.

He noticed I wasn't at the table.

"Where's Mary Anne? Isn't she home for supper?" asked Dad.

"She's not feeling very well. She had just asked if she could skip dinner," said Sharon.

"Really? She was fine this morning," said Dad.

"She's got a headache, so Carlos had just offered to give her Aleve," said Sharon.

"Okay," said Dad.

Even though I really got a headache, I was just too worried on how Cokie might do when she learns the truth about Mr. Jackson and Jennifer.

After dinner, Dad said, "I'll go see how Mary Anne is."

In my room, I was curled up in a ball.

"Mary Anne," said Dad knocking on the door and came in.

That was when he noticed I was asleep. I wasn't warm when he felt my head. He left the room to head downstairs.

"She's asleep. She's not warm though," said Dad.

"The headache will probably go away later," said my stepmother.

An hour later, I didn't come back down even though the headache went away.

"How come she didn't come back down? Does she still got a headache?" asked Sharon.

"Something must have happened to upset her," said Dad. "Excuse me."

In my room, I was on my bed we Dad came in and sat with me.

"Is everything alright, honey?" asked Dad. "How was your headache?"

"Better, but I'm just worried about something, that's all," I said.

"What was on your mind?" asked Dad.

"I saw Jennifer with Mr. Jackson at the movies. So did Kristy and Marci," I began.

"Isn't that something?" asked Dad.

"Don't you see what's wrong with the picture here? Mr. Jackson is the _Annie _director and Jennifer is the manager of mine and Cam's. If Cokie and any of the others find out, I could get picked on. That's what I'm afraid of," I explained.

"I'm sure that won't happen," said Dad.

"The bad part is that Mr. Jackson asked Jennifer to be his girlfriend today," I continued.

"Don't you worry about a thing," said Dad.

I wasn't sure about that. I was still concerned about that.

"Luckily, the others and I decided not to mention it to anyone else so I won't get picked on," I said.

"That would be the best thing to do," agreed Dad.

"I wonder what Cam might say about this, I'm debating to tell him when I see him," I said.

"I would," said Dad.


	4. Mary Anne Gets Bullied

People say I worry too much, but I can't help it. It's normal to be worried, right? I hope I won't get stressed out because I'm concerned about my blood sugar to rise. In the middle of the night, I didn't sleep because I was still concerned to be teased. I have the right to worry about anything. I got up and came down. I was in the living room when Dad, who must have heard me, came down.

"Are you alright? It's too late for you to stay up, honey. Are you still worried about what happen if the kids learned about Mr. Jackson dating your manager?" asked Dad.

I nodded. "I just can't picture that part. I got a bad feeling about it."

"You'll never know," said Dad.

Was that supposed to make me feel better? Maybe, maybe not. If it does happen, Cam and I will never _ever_ forgive Jennifer for that! I'm serious.

It took me a long time to fall asleep. I don't know how I finally did because I woke up after that a nightmare that I had. It was based that the kids were after me when they found out that Jennifer and Mr. Jackson were getting married! It was horrible!

I almost didn't want to go back to sleep. The next day, I nearly decided not to go to school, but I also decided not to worry about it since this would be a secret. Marci told me she's a good secret keeper, so at least I didn't have to worry about that part.

I took a shower because I came down dressed. I had cereal for breakfast.

"Were you able to sleep last night?" asked Dad.

"Not much. It took me awhile to get to sleep. When I did, I had this horrible dream about I was getting bullied after I learned Mr. Jackson asked Jennifer to marry him," I replied.

"Oh, I'm sure you'd be fine today," said Dad.

After I had breakfast, I got up to finish getting ready for school. Then, I left after that. I walked by myself. At school, I went to my locker when Cokie was walking by.

"I heard Mr. Jackson has a new girlfriend. It's in the paper today," said Cokie.

"No way. Who is it?" asked Grace

"Jennifer Vega who happens to be the manager for Cam and Mary Anne," said Cokie.

They just laughed. It's in today's paper? Now, I'm worried _and_ afraid at once. At lunch, I told the others what I heard from Cokie.

"What?" asked the others in their shocked voices.

"Yep. They just laughed. I hope that was a joke," I said.

"It's not, look," said Marci who came to show it to me- she had to sneak that section in school. Very clever.

Oh, boy. I gulped. I put it in my backpack before anyone can see it. After lunch, I was going to my class when Cokie ran by and pushed me into my locker.

"Hey! Watch where you're going," I said.

Too late. She was in the crowds. I was trying to get up, but having trouble getting up. Marci probably ticked Cokie off because she rushed to help me up.

"Are you okay?" asked Marci. "Boy, you have a bruise coming on."

I noticed she was right. Cokie picked on me after school when Marci showed up.

"Get lost, Cokie," said Marci.

"Oh, what are you going to do about it? Beat me up?" asked Cokie.

Marci hates fighting as she and I left in a hurry after our trips to our lockers.

"You better not mess up on a single line or a lyric on your CD," said Cokie.

"How about you could shut up?" asked Marci. "For you info, that will never happen. Leave my friend alone."

Thank god for Marci. At home, I was in my room feeling so embarrassed about today. Why did it had to be in the paper to pick on me? I do not need that. This is going to cause me feel miserable, my grades could drop thinking about it, and possibly making a mistake as a secretary- which I _never _did. And, I don't need my blood sugar to be high.

To my luck, Dad was off and came up while I was doing homework and said, "Want to take off for the afternoon with me? I need to go shopping for new clothes. We can leave in awhile after I do a few pages for paperwork. That won't take long."

I gave with a grin. "Okay. I'll continue my homework while I wait."

I just had to do math and Science. I did Science first. Math was on fractions, which was simple. It was on division and I figured it out on how that right away. I was almost done when Dad came back up.

"I'm all set now. We can go now," said Dad.

"Oh, good. I'll finish the rest later when we get back," I said getting my purse and putting my homework in my backpack for now.

"Okay," said Dad.

We left the house and drove off.

"Some of my clothes were either getting too small or too tight. Want to help me pick them out?" asked Dad.

"Sure. I like the idea," I said.

"You can buy new clothes after that if you want," said Dad.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"I don't mind," said Dad.

"Well, okay," I said. "Where do you have in mind?"

"There's a new store in Stamford called _Stamford Clothing Store_, so we can try it there," replied Dad.

"I heard about that. That's not far from your office," I said.

"That's right. Just a mile after that and I believe, two and a half miles from the recording studios," said Dad.

"Really?" I asked as he nodded. "I never knew that. All I know the store was getting ready to open when we drive by there from the limo."

"Randy told me he went there. It's pretty big," said Dad.

"Did he like it there?" I asked.

"He did. He picked out a few suits for work. They look nice on him," said Dad.

"I bet," I said.

When we got there, it was big alright.

"Wow," I said.

A few minutes later, Dad was already picking out the clothes and went to the fitting room to try them on.

"What you think about this?" asked Dad who tried on a shirt with his belly shown.

"Um, Dad, isn't that a belly shirt?" I asked.

"You're right," said Dad who was laughing.

"Because I don't think you would let me wear any belly shirts," I said with a honest smile.

That's what you call me a fashion expert. He was trying on another when Cokie showed up. Now what?

"Well, isn't it cute?" asked Cokie.

"About what?" I asked.

"Being here with your boyfriend," said Cokie.

I laughed and said, "Actually, I'm with my father."

I saw him coming out with a shirt that is much too long like a nightgown- don't worry he noticed, too.

"Boy, what would his folks think of that?" asked Cokie rudely.

"He's an adult and his parents are dead," I said. "Plus, I'm just helping him out, so leave us alone."

I walked away and stayed near the fitting rooms. Cokie is _so_ immature. Dad picked out clothes that were just right. I did decide to pick out clothes myself while Dad picked out new pants. I found two shirts I liked. One is a cat that is sort of like Tigger, one had a red and white hearts, and blue sailor style.


	5. Cokie Puts Gum in Mary Anne's Hair

When I was waiting for Dad- who was in line-, I heard voices and went to see. It was Cokie and Grace.

"I can't believe that our _Annie _diector and Mary Anne's manager are dating," said Cokie.

"So nice," said Grace.

"I bet that wimp girl would be too chicken to do anything," said Cokie.

"Yeah," said Grace.

That got me mad. I went to the bench. Then, Cokie came and nearly stepped on my shoes when I picked them up in time. Cokie laughed for something I didn't know. When I looked in the mirror, she messed up my hair. I also noticed there was gum in my hair- she must have put it there. I got _so_ mad. Marci, who was saw me, went to Cokie who was still giggling.

"Alright. You need to drop it right now," said Marci.

"Says who?" asked Cokie.

"Me," said Marci as she got me. "Come on, Mary Anne, I better help you out."

We headed to the bathroom after I told Dad I needed to fix my hair there. Marci had scissors to cut the gum out of my hair. She had trouble since it was stuck like glue.

"Boy, this gum is so hard to take out," said Marci.

"I know," I said trying to stay still as possible.

"If that Cokie tries to go near you doing these stupid things, she's going to get it. She's an idiot to this to you," said Marci as I agreed with her.

"If Dad's still out there waiting, should we tell him about this? I'm a bit too embarrassed to tell him," I said.

"Might as well because this gum is too stubborn to take out," said Marci. "I'll go tell him, be right back."

She went to Dad who was on the bench.

"Hi, Marci. Is Mary Anne ready to go?" asked Dad.

"Well, not really. Cokie put gum in Mary Anne's hair. She was too embarrassed to see you like that. I'm trying to get it out, but it was stuck like glue," said Marci.

"We can try it at home real quick," said Dad.

"Okay, I'll go get her," said Marci as she went back to me. "He said we can try it at home."

"How can I show myself looking like this?" I asked in a low voice.

"Leave that to me," said Marci putting her cap on me. "Come on."

That was very smart. We were able to go straight out. At home, she took it off carefully.

"Let's try this again," said Marci.

"Yeah," I agreed.

Thank god she came to my rescue.

"What happen here?" asked my sister.

"Cokie put gum in my hair," I answered.

"I was there. I was trying to cut it out, but it doesn't want to cooperate, so your stepfather suggested to do it here," said Marci.

"That Cokie needs to chill out," said Dawn.

"We already told him about what she did earlier," said Marci. "She was too embarrassed to say anything. He didn't seem to mind and understood."

"Goodness," said Dawn.

"Cokie is a jerk to do this at the store," said Marci.

"Tell me about it," agreed my sister.

Marci finally got the gum out.

"There we go. Almost done," said Marci as she cut all the pieces where the gum was.

She was done and fixed my hair in a bun.

"That's better. Thanks, Marci, you're my lifesavor," I said.

"I know I am," said Marci as we giggled. "If Cokie tells anyone, I'm going to let her have it because someone could pick on you even more."

"It was the worst day of my life," I said. "I had a perfect one with Dad until this happened to me."

"At least that's over now," Marci pointed out.

"True," I agreed.

"I'm glad your hair looks brand new," said Dawn.

"So am I," I smile.

Then, I had a text from Cam saying he's got released from the hospital and already had stitches taken out. He's well enough for tomorrow- thank god! He doesn't know what's going on, so I'm going to tell him.

"Good, I can't wait to be with Cam," I said.

"I bet," said Marci.

I finished my homework before Dad was ready to continue our father-daughter day.

"Marci can join us," said Dad.

"Great idea," I said with a grin.

"Yeah," said Marci.

"My hair feels so much better without the gum," I said.

"I'm glad, honey," said Dad.

"Me, too," I said.

"Same here," said Marci.


	6. Mary Anne Tells Cam the News

Later that night, my friends knew what Cokie did during the meeting and told them how much trouble we had to take the gum of my hair.

"I'm glad Marci came to my rescue," I said.

"I know," said Kristy.

"Cam texted me to tell me that he's out of the hospital and had stitches taken out, so he's good for tomorrow," I said.

"Good, he'd be early," said Claudia.

"At least that's going to help you to forget about today," added Stacey.

"That's true it can," I agreed. "Should I bring it up to Cam? He doesn't know anything about Mr. Jackson and Jennifer."

"I would," replied Mallory.

"I'll tell him when Mr. Hall comes for me," I said.

"Good idea," commented Jessi.

"Yeah," agreed the other girls.

"Bring that newspaper Marci showed you earlier," said Kristy.

"I plan on it," I said with a grin.

"I hope that Cokie would leave you alone," said Kristy.

"Or Marci is going to let Cokie have it if she goes near me to bug me," I added.

"Good," commented Stacey.

The next day, at school, I was visiting my locker on my way to lunch when Cokie sneaked by to put something on me and left. When I came to lunch, the girls spotted something.

"Is that paper on your back of your shirt?" asked Kristy as she took it off. "Kick me? That must be Cokie."

"I won't be surprised if she did," I answered.

After lunch, I crumbled that paper and threw it out before Cokie could see it. Then, Cokie-speaking of the devil-showed up to push me out of the way that caused my books to fall. I didn't fall thankfully. I think I spoke too soon because when I picked up my books when Grace did the same thing to and caused me to fall this time.

Marci noticed and came to help me up.

"Get lost," Marci told Grace in an angry tone.

"You can't make me," said Grace.

"Leave Mary Anne alone _now_," said Marci in a firm voice. "Come on."

She and I left for our classes. In Science, I noticed a threat note in my textbook- _Beware or you're dead_. I got up to show that to the teacher.

"Someone must have done it," I said.

I heard someone smirking and noticed it was Grace- who somehow did it- after we compared the handwriting.

"Get out, Grace," said the teacher.

"Why?" asked Grace.

"Because I said so," said the teacher. "You don't write in a textbook especially a threat note. You're going have to pay for the damage."

She threw Grace out to the principal's office. Later, before Science ended, I heard Grace got a detention for two days starting today. Good lesson to be taught. Grace got fined for sixty bucks for that. Plus, she was forced to give me another textbook and to apologize, but that didn't got her get out of the detention. I felt a lot better.

At home, I was waiting for the limo when it came. I grabbed the section and headed out. I was _so_ glad to see Cam.

"Hi, Cam, long time no see," I said as he laughed. "I got something to show you on the way. Something you need to know about."

"Uh, okay. What it is?" asked Cam.

I got that section out and showed it to him and added, "Did you know about this?"

"No," said Cam.

"The one Jennifer is dating happened to be the _Annie _director, Mr. Jackson," I said.

"Whoa. What?" asked Cam.

"Yes," I said. "Because of that, Cokie and Grace already started picking on me. First of all, I was out clothes shopping with Dad yesterday when Cokie put gum in my hair. You should see how much trouble Marci had to take out. It nearly took her thirty to thirty-five minutes to get it out."

"Wow," said Cam.

"Then, Cokie pushed me against my locker. Here's what happened today as well. I was going to lunch when Kristy took off a note saying _Kick Me _from my shirt. She even pushed me out of the way that caused my books to drop the first time and Grace did the same thing that made me to fall at that time. And, worst of all, Grace wrote _Beware or you're dead_ in my Science book. Thankfully, she got in trouble by paying sixty bucks and got a detention for two days. She did paid. She apologized, but wasn't allowed to skip the detention," I continued.

"That's bad," said Cam.

"Tell me about it," I agreed. "Marci was my lifesavior. I'm lucky to have her as my friend. She's protecting me from getting teased."

"That's a good thing," continued Cam.

At the studios, we were in the meeting room.

"Welcome back, Cam. I have news to give," said Jennifer.

"I already know. I heard all about it," I said.

"You didn't get me to tell you what I was about to say," said Jennifer.

"I do. It's in the newspaper. I saw you and Mr. Jackson at the movies. And, I saw him asking you to be his girlfriend. Mr. Jackson is my director of _Annie_. Because of that, I got picked on by my worst emenies. I knew that was going to happen. Thanks a lot," I told her as I got out the section to show it to her. "That's how I knew. And, it said you two have been hanging out for six months."

"How come we didn't know about this?" asked Cam.

"We weren't sure if we would have a very serious relationship. We liked each other so much that we decided to go on dates," replied Jennifer.

"We have the right to know. Mary Anne doesn't deserved to get teased. She told me everything and I'm glad she did because I didn't know anything about it until Mr. Hall picked her up," said Cam.


	7. Mary Anne Gets Hospitalized

Later that night, I had a terrible night. I didn't sleep at all. I was in tears. In fact, I was crying. I was so upset about what happened. Dad came in to be with me.

"Is anything okay, sweetie?" asked Dad as he sat with me.

"I'm still so mad about what happened. Jennifer didn't even care," I said.

"I know," said Dad comforting me.

I was hugging him tightly. I didn't fall asleep until it was almost four.

The next day, I didn't go to school because of yesterday. Plus, I was tired from last night since I didn't sleep very well. In fact, I was started to get scared to attend school. Yet, I forgot all about it when I went to the studios. I'm glad about that. I paid attention during the Baby-Sitters Club meeting. Good. I didn't make one mistake to my surprise.

The following day, I thought I would forgot about it. Apparently, I didn't because my grades dropped down to Fs. Why? I could hardly pay attention in any of my classes. That's making me to feel miserable. I didn't particiate in any assignments. I must have forgotten to study for two tests because my mind went blank and guessed because I had two Fs. Boy, did I had a bad day. Even after I retook them, I failed again. My father is going to kill me, but I knew he might understand how unhappy I am. Plus, my blood sugar has been out of wrack because of that.

Later, it's funny that I can focus more during the studios. Why can't that happen during school? That night, at home, Dad noticed I wasn't myself. I didn't say one word since I got home from the studios.

"Is Mary Anne okay?" asked Sharon.

"I'm not sure. I'm concerned about her," replied Dad. "Excuse me."

I was in my room when he knocked on my door and came in.

"Are you alright, Mary Anne?" asked Dad as he sat on the bed with me. "You were quiet since you got home from the studios. I was worried about you."

"I had a tough day, that's all," I answered as I told him everything. "I don't know what to do anymore, Dad."

"It'll be okay," said Dad stroking my hair.

"That's not like me failing any of my classes," I said looking I was going to cry any minute.

"I know. Would you feel better if you see Dr. Reese?" asked Dad.

"That would be great. That's the only thing I can think of," I replied.

"Do you want me to contact her tomorrow?" asked Dad.

"Yes please," I answered trying to cheer up a bit.

"Okay, I'm sure you'd be happier once you see her," said Dad holding my hand.

"I hope so," I said trying not to cry.

"I know so," said Dad putting my head against him as I put my arms around him and I did end up weeping. "It'll be alright now, Mary Anne, honey."

He was still stroking my hair. I knew I can count on him. I'm surprised he didn't get mad at me for falling behind since he knew why and what made me unhappy since I got picked on. I didn't want to dislike school because of all this. I also had a terrible night again. Not only I couldn't sleep, I kept having that same nightmare over and over that the night before.

I was so tired that Dad kept me home from school. Dad couldn't blame me. That's what I did. I slept part of the day and when two came around, I was better enough to go to the studios and try to focus there. I find that helps me out. We talked about the concert this weekend in New Jersey to make up for the cancellations. That was a good idea. We decided to stay overnight since the concert would be at one on both Saturday and Sunday so we wouldn't have to go back and forth. I liked that idea way better.

Later at home, I told my family about what was going on. Dad told me he called Dr. Reese and I'd be seeing her tomorrow at five-fifteen, so I can't make it to the Baby-Sitters Club meeting. I'll let Kristy know before then ahead of time.

In the middle of the night, I was at Dad's side.

"Dad," I said trying to wake him. "Dad."

That was when he noticed me there right away.

"My blood sugar machine is blinking and I'm getting a minor headache," I said.

It was a good thing we went straight to the hospital because the doctors also noticed the machine was blinking and when they checked my blood sugar, it was very high at 500 mg/dl. Was that from stress I had? Luckily, I managed to keep my blood sugar to go back to normal while they changed the batteries. It was at 80 mg/dl. Good.

That was when they rushed me there. I still could not breathe at all. The next day, I couldn't breathe and was using the tube. I tried not to cough, but it would fail. Then, Meredith noticed I was coughing up blood.

"Let me go get Dad," said Meredith as she ran downstairs and said, "She can't breathe, but her tube is fine. Then, I noticed she was couging up blood."

He came right up noticing Meredith was right and we rushed back to the hospital. Minutes later, it turned to be the pneumonia again. We almost had to cancel Dr. Reese that afternoon, but she decided to see me instead. That made sense to me. I couldn't attend the studios or the Baby-Sitters Club meeting. I don't have a sitting job. So, I was all set.


	8. Dr Reese's Advice for Mary Anne

Later, at five, Dr. Reese arrived to see me at the hospital and said, "Hi, Mary Anne."

"Hi," I said as I sat up in bed.

"How are you doing?" asked Dr. Reese.

"I still got that pneumonia. I pray the breathing issue will not get worse. That happened to me twice before Christmas. That was no fun," I said.

That was when the breathing problems showed up.

"Uh-oh. I can't breathe. Grab my tube. It's next to you," I said as she did and I put it on right away.

"So, your father told me you have been unhappy with school lately," said Dr. Reese.

"You can talk to her after she uses the tube. She stays quiet so she can breathe better," said Dad who arrived to see me.

"Oh, hello, Mr. Spier," said Dr. Reese.

"Dad, it just cracked again and I still can't breathe," I said.

"I'll go get nurse, honey," said Dad as he left.

Then, I stopped breathing as usual. Worst of all, I found out the breathing issues were getting worse. I felt better after 20 minutes.

"Feel better now?" asked Dad.

"Yes thankfully," I replied.

"Dr. Reese went to get coffee. She'll be right back," said Dad.

"Okay. That's fine," I smiled.

That was when she returned.

"I'm back now," said Dr. Reese as she sat down. "So, um, what made you unhappy in school lately?"

"I was just getting picked on. See, I have a manager, Jennifer Vega, for the recording studios. I just learned that she's dating, Mr. Jackson who happened to be the director of _Annie_. That's an issue for me because I was afraid I could get picked on by some other _Annie _cast members," I began.

"That is a problem," agreed Dr. Reese.

"Guess what? Apparently, it was in the paper and Cam Mason already started picking on me. Boy, was I mad at Jennifer. Cam couldn't believe it either. She and Mr. Jackson have been together for six months and we didn't even know it. Thankfully, Marci protects me from getting picked on," I continued. "I'm lucky to have her as my friend."

"I agree with you," said Dr. Reese.

"And, ever since then I was being teased, I became unhappy, my grades have dropped, and I must have been went blank on two tests because I failed even after I retook them," I kept on trying to hold back the tears while Dad had my hand to comfort me.

"Why don't you try not to think about it?" asked Dr. Reese.

"That's going to be one tough thing to do," I said as I told her what Cokie and Grace did. "I don't want to dislike school because of that."

"I don't blame you," said Dr. Reese. "You can try to ignore them and walk away if you need to before they pick on you."

"That would be the best thing to do," agreed Dad.

"The weirdest part is that I can focus more at the studios," I said. "I wish that could happen to me at school as well. My blood sugar went high and I knew it was from stress."

We talked for an hour before she had to go back to her office for her another patient in 20 minutes.

"Do you feel better now after you talked to her?" asked Dad.

"A little bit," I replied.

"Good. I just want to see you happy in school so your grades can go up," said Dad.

"I know," I agreed. "I would hate to start disliking because of what happened."

"I agree with you, honey," said Dad.

I was glad I was able to talk to Dr. Reese to make me feel better. I got released from the hospital two days later. I was on the couch relaxing for the day. I was due to go back to school tomorrow, but I hope I won't get picked on again. I'll try to follow Dr. Reese by ignoring the girls if I need to. I_ pray_ that would work.


	9. The News about Jennifer and Mr Jackson

The next day, I was finally back at school. I heard Cokie and Grace talking about me behind my back, but I walked by them to ignore them. So far, Dr. Reese's advice worked. I just hope it would be like that for the rest of the day.

I think Kristy heard them because she went to them and said, "Stop talking about my best friend."

She gave them the attitude and continued walking away from them. I'm glad she said something to them.

"There. That took care of them," said Kristy.

"Dr. Reese saw me in the hospital two days ago and told me to ignore them to make me feel better. I pretended to be deaf," I said.

"Smart move," commented Kristy.

"I know. Somehow, it worked," I said.

"Good," said Kristy with a grin.

"I agree with you," I said.

At Gym, Cokie was trying to make me trip, but I ignored that and walked around. Smart idea, right? Wrong. Grace made me trip over her shoes and I fell over. Kristy came to help me up.

"Lay off, Grace," said Kristy.

"No way," said Grace.

"Yes," said Kristy in her firm voice as we got away.

I tried to walk on my ankle, but it was too sore to move it.

"We should go to the nurse. I think you hurt your ankle pretty badly," said Kristy.

"I think so, too," I said.

We told the Gym teacher what Grace did and she got in trouble. Plus, Kristy and I went to the nurse. In the nurse's office, the nurse noticed my ankle was swollen.

"Looks like you sprained it," said the nurse. "Is your father at work or at home today to bring you to the doctor's?"

"He's working today," I said.

"Okay," said the nurse.

She called him right away and he came in two minutes. He noticed the nurse was right.

"It was Grace who made Mary Anne trip over her shoes," said Kristy. "She got in trouble after we told the Gym teacher."

"Cokie nearly did, but I walked away to avoid," I added. "I tried to walk on it, but it's too sore."

At the hospital, Dr. Wellington took an x-ray and it was sprained like the nurse said. The doctor gave me the crutches.

"Come back in two weeks or so," said the doctor giving Dad the date to bring me back.

"Okay," said Dad. "Can she go back to school?"

"Yes she can," replied the doctor.

He also gave me a note to excuse me from Gym for the next two weeks.

Then, we left to ahead back to school.

"I want to switch Gym classes so I don't have to deal with Cokie or Grace anymore," I said.

"I don't blame you," said Dad.

"Thank god I got Kristy to help me up," I said.

At lunch, the other girls noticed me on crutches while Marci was helping me.

"Kristy just told us about what happened in Gym," said Dawn.

"Yeah, Dad took me to the doctor's and it was sprained according to the x-ray, so I'll be on crutches for two weeks and I'll be excused from Gym for the time being. I'll give the note to the teacher tomorrow so she would know," I said.

"I'm glad Grace got in big trouble for doing that to you," said Stacey.

"Me, too," I agreed. "I want to switch Gym classes to avoid Cokie and Grace."

"Good idea," commented Kristy. "I'm ready to do the same thing. Those girls think it was funny to get you hurt."

"They think wrong. They wouldn't like it if I do the same thing to them," I said as the rest agreed with me.

"They are very immature," said Claudia.

"I know," I said.

Logan came and said, "Do you know what's in the paper today?"

"What?" I asked.

He showed me a piece and something was telling me why I was being picked on even more: Mr. Jackson and Jennifer are getting married. They just got engaged two days ago.

"They're what?" I asked.

"What is it?" asked Kristy.

"They're getting married," I whispered.

I showed it to the others.

"Uh-oh," said Stacey. "I bet that's why Cokie and Grace are getting worse."

I couldn't believe it! Wait until Cam hears about this.

"I'm showing this to Cam after school when he picks me for the studios," I said.

"Good idea," agreed Kristy.

I got scared even more. This going to make me not to like school even more if they keep me feeling miserable. After school, Cam had a cold, so he had to stay home. At home, I was in my room doing homework. There's one thing I'm worried about: Am I able to perform for my concert? Dr. Wellington didn't mention it. I don't dare to say anything except to my father later on.

Dad came home an hour later. He already knew about Cam.

"Hi, how did you make it out at school?" asked Dad.

"Pretty good. Marci offered to help me out at lunch," I replied. "Oh, did you get today's paper?"

"I didn't read it yet. Why?" asked Dad.

"Well, guess what? Mr. Jackson and Jennifer are engaged. He just asked her to marry him two days ago," I said as I got a piece out that Logan gave me. "Logan was the one who saw it. I was planning to show that to Cam when Mr. Hall picks me up for the recording studios."

"I would," said Dad.

"I couldn't believe it," I said. "And, wait until I see Jennifer, too. I bet that's why Cokie and Grace got worse. I didn't know how they knew until afterwards at lunchtime."

Thank goodness Cokie isn't in the play so I won't have to deal with her. I wasn't planning to quit because of her.

"I also got a question. Would I be able to perform on concert? I'm sure I can sit on a chair without problems. Some singers do that even without crutches," I said.

"I'm sure you can," said Dad.

"I didn't dare to say anything to the doctor in case he tells me that I couldn't," I said. "Then, we would have to cancel again like we did a week ago because Cam was hospitalized."

"I see what you mean," said Dad.

Later that night, I couldn't sleep at all. I was worried I'd get picked on even more even though I tried to ignore that. I decided to think happy thoughts and somehow, it helped me to get to sleep. I was going to see Dr. Reese tomorrow at five-thirty and I'm going to tell her, too.


	10. Mary Anne's Bad Day

The next day, at school, Cokie and Grace were bothering me. I walked away from them after I gave them an attitude when I told them to leave me alone.

At Gym, I sat on the bleechers while watching the others play. I already gave the Gym teacher the excused note before that. They were playing volleyball and when Cokie hit the ball, it was headed to my direction and I almost ducked when it- boom!- hit my eye and fell. Kristy got so mad at Cokie and rushed over me noticing my eye was bleeding. I was crying in pain. Cokie got thrown out of the Gym after Kristy told the Gym teacher about what Cokie did.

"It'll be okay," said Kristy.

"My eye hurts," I said while I was still sobbing.

The nurse came two minutes later and took me to the nurse's office. I was in there while I had an ice pack on my eye while I was still in pain. When she called Dad, he was in a meeting and couldn't leave there.

"It's all Jennifer and Mr. Jackson's fault to cause me to get bullied," I said angrily. "Maybe if they didn't date or get engaged, none of this would've happened."

"I agree with you," said Kristy who was keeping me company.

"Thank god Cokie isn't in _Annie_ because I wasn't going to quit because of her," I continued.

I was able to continue the school day. But my grades were_ still_ dropping. I was also too embarrassed for my bruised eye to be showed at lunch, but Kristy told the other girls and they were shocked.

"I'm glad Cokie got thrown out of Gym," said Dawn.

After school, I arrived at Dr. Reece's office since Cam still had a bad cold, so that was perfect for me to see her.

"Hi," said Dr. Reece.

"Hi," I said as we went to her space.

"What happen to you?" asked Dr. Reece noticing my bruised eye and crutches.

"First of all, I sprained my ankle when Grace made me trip yesterday during Gym. She got in trouble. So, I'll be on crutches for a few weeks. And, today, in Gym, the kids were doing volleyball while I was watching from the bleechers and when Cokie hit the ball, it was headed to my direction and I almost ducked when it hit my eye and fell from the bleechers. Kristy came to me and my eye was bleeding so hard that I cried in pain. The nurse came two and took me to the nurse's office. I was in there while I had an ice pack on my eye while I was still in pain. When she called Dad though, he was in a meeting and couldn't leave there," I explained.

"Oh," said Dr. Reece.

"Cokie got thrown out from the Gym," I said.

"Good," said Dr. Reece.

"My grades haven't been improved yet. I am so sick and tired of that," I said.

"I bet, dear," said the therapist.

"Oh, guess what I learned from yesterday's paper to cause that?" I asked. "Jennifer and Mr. Jackson got engaged."

"Oh, yes, I saw that," said Dr. Reece.

"Logan showed it to me and I was shocked. That's going to make me not to like school one of these days," I said. "I don't want that to happen at all."

"I don't blame you," said Dr. Reece.

We talked for quite awhile before I left for home. At home, I was in my room. My hands were shaking while trying to do homework, so I decided to take a break. I was too humiliated to show Dad, who was home since after the meeting, my bad eye. Dawn must have told Dad about what happened during Gym because he knocked on my door and came in.

"Hi. Dawn was just telling me about what Cokie did to you during Gym," said Dad.

"You bet," I agreed.

I managed to show him my bruised eye.

"What is with Cokie doing stuff to you?" asked Dad.

"Beats me. I'm glad she got kicked out of Gym class for that," I said. "She and Grace are nuts to do these mean things to me."

"I agree with you, honey," said Dad holding my hand while it was still shaking. "Your hands are shaking."

"They were like that doing my homework, so I just decided to take a little break," I said.

"I don't blame you to do so," said Dad.

"I told Dr. Reece about what happened- especially on what I learned about Jennifer and Mr. Jackson. She saw that already," I said.

My hands were shaking so hard that I didn't finish my homework until barely two hours later. It also took a very long time for me to get to sleep.


	11. Mary Anne Gets Firm to Jennifer

Later, I didn't sleep much. I wish Jennifer and Mr. Jackson wouldn't cause this problem in the first place. I wish I can come up with a plan to break them up so this can be stopped. But if I did that, they might blame that on me and make things worse. I didn't fall asleep until around four am. Only because my blood sugar was low and I had orange juice to get my blood sugar to go back to normal.

The next day, Dad noticed how tired I was.

"You looked tired," said Dad.

"I didn't sleep too much," I said. "I wish Mr. Jackson and Jennifer could just break up so this can be over."

"I know," said Dad stroking my hair.

"I'd like to make a plan, but then I realized if I did something to cause them to break up, they might blame it on me and make things worse. I don't know what to do anymore," I said. "I just can't take this any longer."

Then, I had an idea to make everything stop. But I was too tired for school since I didn't sleep most of the night, so Dad decided to keep me home, which is a good idea. Later, I was good enough to be with Cam.

I was talking to him on the way to the studios after he noticed my bruised eye and crutches and we both decided to come up with a plan to break Jennifer and Mr. Jackson up. Just to tell them on how I feel.

"Let's pray it would work. I am tired of being teased because of them," I said.

"Telling people how you feel usually works," said Cam.

"There is one problem: I don't think that would cause them to break up," I said. "I want to end the bullying, that's all."

At the studios, I said, "Before we start recording anything, I have something to say."

"Not right now," said Jennifer.

Cam and I looked at each other.

"I think we should," said Cam. "Recording the CD can wait. Do you realize what's happening here with Mary Anne because of you and Mr. Jackson?"

"I am tired of being bullied. Thanks to you, Grace tripped me that caused me to sprain my ankle and I got hit in my eye by Cokie. Thank goodness she go thrown out because of that. This is all your and Mr. Jackson's fault. It's a good thing Cokie isn't in _Annie_ because I wasn't going to quit because of her," I said in my firm voice.

"Don't talk to me like that," said Jennifer.

"Tough, that shouldn't happen in the first place," I said. "You just don't care about what has been happening to me. I got so stressed out that my breathing problems had gotten worse and I was hospitalized. Plus, my blood sugar has gone crazy. If you're going to be like that, I won't attend the concert in New Jersey this weekend."

"Me either," added Cam. "Mary Anne is right. I have the right to be in this because I'm the one who cares about her, not you."

"Mind your...," started Jennifer.

"How about not?" asked Cam. "I don't want to see Mary Anne to get hurt when she's being teased."

"I think we're done for the day, you are being too tough. I was just telling you how I felt," I said. "We can record tracks another day."

"Yeah," agreed Cam.

We left and we couldn't believe that Jennifer won't care about my feelings.

"Would Mr. Jackson understand? You can try talking to him," said Cam.

"I could try to do so," I said.

That sounds like a good idea. I can't do the National Tour right now due to my injury, so Kathi's taking over for me like she did one time when I sprained my ankle after Cokie dared to do something dangerous like riding my bike in the street and I got hit by a car. Dad was so angry that he forbidded her to stay away from me, which she hasn't done to do so at all.

At home, I was in my room crying. I still couldn't believe that Jennifer won't care about my feelings. I think she's changed since she got engaged to Mr. Jackson. So does Cam.

"Mary Anne?" asked Dawn as she came in. "You're home early."

"Because of Jennifer," I said as I told her about it. "She doesn't care about my feelings."

"You had the right to tell her on how you feel. I'm glad Cam's the one who cares about it," said Dawn.

"Me, too," I agreed. "Cam wants me to try to talk to Mr. Jackson."

"I agree that you should," said Dawn.

That night, Dad probably came home early because when he came by, he noticed how upset I was.

"Is everything okay, sweetie?" asked Dad as he came in to be with me. "I'm surprised that you're home early."

I told him everything while I was still sobbing.

"Oh, it'll be okay," said Dad.

"I hope talking to Mr. Jackson would make him understand about my feelings," I said.

"I'm sure it will," promised Dad.

I'm glad I can count on my dad.


End file.
